


Offend

by ThatSinga



Series: Rowvember 2020 [27]
Category: Saints Row
Genre: Bickering, F/M, Gardens & Gardening, Hurt, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Making Up, Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-28
Updated: 2020-11-28
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:49:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,341
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27751834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatSinga/pseuds/ThatSinga
Summary: Velvet is eager to show Johnny something she is very passionate about, however, he doesn't share her excitement.
Relationships: Aisha (Saints Row)/Johnny Gat, Female Boss (Saints Row)/Johnny Gat
Series: Rowvember 2020 [27]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1995631
Kudos: 7





	Offend

"Come one, Vivi, where are you taking me?" Velvet had dragged Johnny all the way to the mainland, insisting she wanted to show him something.

"You'll see when we get there," she teased, not revealing their destination just yet.

He knew that the Boss sometimes disappeared for a day, during spring, summer and fall, but never winter, doing some personal stuff away from the city. He had always wondered where she went, but respected her wishes to keep it private, so he never questioned her about it.

Whatever it was, she had decided to let him in on her secret. They had taken a plane to get off Stilwater's islands, and were now sitting on a bus on their way to the demoness' surprise.

"If you wanted to kill me in secret, you could have just done so back in Stilwater, you know. Plenty enough secluded spots back home." He complained, not a fan of the journey they had taken.

"Oh quit your whining, we're almost there," she promised.

They had reached a very green area made up of several gardens for rent, all lined up next to each other. The two Saints walked along a footpath that went through the large area, until she stopped in front of a gate that was surrounded by tall hedges. She retrieved a key from her pocket and unlocked it, the heavy door creaking as the redhead opened it, Johnny following right behind her.

Beyond the gate was a small garden, roughly 36m² in size, a large variety of different colored flowers and plants across multiple garden plots, even some berries off to the side could be seen. A narrow cobblestone path was making its way from one end of the yard to the other, leading to a small, wooden tool shed in the back. She turned around with a big smile on her face as she showed him what she had been working on over the last year. When she had rented the spot, it was merely an empty field of grass and dirt. 

She had always loved Earth's flora, having taken a liking to the many colorful flowers this world contained. She had done some minor gardening in her past, and picked up the hobby again last year when she rented this little spot, away from the city and the gang business, a little retreat to take a break from it all. She would usually come here once a month to check on the plants, remove weeds and do maintenance to the flower beds. During the very hot summer she had come here more regularly to water the flowers properly, the lack of rain had worried her for their wellbeing.

She had kept her hobby a secret, not wanting others to know this softer side of her, but she trusted Johnny and wanted to share her work with someone she cared about.

"The fuck is this, you bury people here or somethin'?" He asked with a bored expression, shattering her excitement immediately.

"N-no it's- I" she stammered, trying to make the situation less awkward.

She had brought him here to let him be a part of something she enjoyed, and he was ruining the moment with his indifferent attitude.

"You dragged me all the way out here to look at some plants?" He sighed, not impressed one bit.

"Fuck you, I asked you to come because I love this and wanted to share it with you!" She was getting defensive. 

This was supposed to be a little relaxation and change of pace from their hectic and dangerous activities in the city, but he was just shitting all over it.

"Yo, I didn't ask to come here, and neither did you, you just made me tag along!" He was getting louder too.

She hated that they were starting a fight in her safe haven.

"I get it if you're not into gardening, I didn't really expect you to, but I had hoped that you'd at least appreciate the sight, or show some interest in something I'm passionate about, like at least pretend to care, is that so hard? But nooo Mr Badass over here is too cool for flowers, my bad." She was getting heated, tears starting to form in her eyes, she tried her hardest not to shed them.

Her words hit him like a train. She was right. It's the same thing Aisha had used to tell him whenever she made him do things she enjoyed, but he didn't. Whenever he had to take her shopping, when she booked tables at fancy restaurants, their dancing lessons. He had endured those because he didn't want to disappoint the person he had cared about, tried to make her happy by being part of things she enjoyed. And while he had loved Aisha, Velvet was his friend, too, the one he was the closest to, trusting her with his life. Their relationship was complicated, with her being a demon and him still not fully being over the former singer, but he at least owed her the same level of respect.

"I'm sorry." To the gang leader's surprise, he apologized. "I underestimated how much taking care of this garden meant to you, didn't mean to be disrespectful of your hobby."

"I-... You mean it?" She hadn't expected him to do a 180 and be respectful all of a sudden.

"Yeah, realized I sounded like an asshole, sorry 'bout that." He gave her a hug.

"Thanks."

"It looks nice," he complimented her, "I like the little rocks you used for the plots, and the colors look pretty. You did that all by yourself?"

Her face lit up at his words, "Yeah!"

She wanted to talk more about it with him. She led him over to a patch of red strawberries, plucking one off the plant and offering it to him.

"Try it," she requested.

He popped the small berry into his mouth, chewing it a little before swallowing it. She wore an expectant expression on her face.

"It's good." He had to admit, he hadn't expected it to taste as well as it did, but it was delicious.  
"Better than what you get in stores."

"I'm glad you like it."

She went on to show him the various flowers she had grown, tulips, roses, azaleas, violets, orchids, and many more. He listened to her explanations of the planting and maintenance process, their names, and some other trivia. He'd probably forget half of it by the time she was done talking, but seeing her this excited made it bearable.

"I didn't take you for a flower enthusiast, Boss." Granted, nobody would. This was a well kept secret of hers, a soft and kind side that she didn't want others to be aware of.

"I've always loved them, from the first time I've seen them in person. The plants in hell are all so ugly in comparison," she explained.

Johnny then got an idea, "Can I ask something from you?"

"Sure, what's up?"

"Would you mind helping me take care of Aisha's grave?" He requested.

He had tried making the grave look nicer by placing flower bouquets in front of the tombstone from time to time, but compared to some of the other graves, it looked plain.  
If she could help set it up with nice kerb sets, decorated with flowers and ornaments, that would have been amazing.

"Of course, I'd love to!" She agreed. "To be honest, I've wanted to do something for her grave for a while now, but didn't wanna do anything to it without your permission, just wasn't ready to tell you about my hobby yet."

"Hell yeah, she'll love that, thanks, Vivi." He was glad she had agreed.

They slowly made their way back to the bus stop, then they had to catch a plane so they'd arrive back in Stilwater before dark. On their way back, she had already started pitching him design ideas for Aisha's resting place.

She was looking forward to giving her old friend the gorgeous grave she deserved.


End file.
